Cell Phone, TomTom Rider 2, and Nolan N-Com

[Ian Farlow]

I just purchased a TomTom Rider 2 when I found it at Best Buy for $380.00. I have used both TomTom and Garmin products in the past, and can work with either, so I jumped at the chance to get a GPS unit for the bike because the price was so (relatively) low. So, let me back up just a bit...

I had been using my phone paired with the N-Com and it worked very well. The sound was very clear, and anyone that was talking with me while I was riding couldn't tell that I was on a motorcycle. As far as I was concerned, it worked perfectly. So, that said, I decided to add the TomTom to the mix.

I cleared the pairing that I had between the helmet and the phone (reset both the helmet and the phone so that I could start over). I paired the helmet with the TomTom, and right away I noticed an issue. When you pair with the TomTom, you are given the option to test the connection. I hit the test button, and the helmet speakers "popped" and then I heard the test message. Well... I heard most of it, because the very first part was cut off. I realized that the TomTom was establishing a connection when I hit the test button, and as a result, the first part of the message was lost while the pairing took place. Odd, I thought, but I pressed on. :huh:

I then paired the phone with the TomTom. Nothing unusual at that point. I was able to transfer my phonebook to the TomTom, and even placed a test call to my phone just to see that the TomTom recognized the incoming call. I then hit the road, and the real issues began.

First, the TomTom will not keep a connection "alive" with the N-Com. What I mean by this is that every time the TomTom needed to give me directions like "in 500 feet, turn left," it would make an active connection, the speakers would "pop," and then I would hear "...hundred feet, turn left." Damn. I then got a phone call (pre-planned for testing purposes). The TomTom showed the caller information on the screen, and I accepted the call. The TomTom routed the call to the helmet as expected. About three or four minutes into the call, the TomTom decided to drop the connection to the helmet, although the call was still active (as indicated by the phone icon on the TomTom screen and confirmed by speaking with the caller in person later). There was no way for me to get the TomTom to reconnect to the helmet to finish the call. Damn again. And let me clarify here that the battery on the helmet was fully charged before testing, and the TomTom was running off its own battery, also fully charged.

So I pulled over and placed an outbound call. As soon as the call started ringing, the TomTom dropped the connection to the helmet. Damn a third time.

I called TomTom (obviously not from the helmet/TomTom as I wouldn't have been able to actually speak with them ), and they indicated that because I was not using the included Cardio Scala (or whatever it is called) headset, they couldn't guarantee that it would work as expected and they couldn't do anything for me to help me get it working. What? :grrr: Great...

So, I am left with these choices:

1. Return the GPS and get nothing.
2. Return the GPS and wait for the Garmin Zumo 660 (I would rather wait on the 660 than get the 550 based on my own research between the two units).
3. Return the GPS and get a standard vehicle GPS (concerned that I wouldn't be able to connect both the helmet and the phone, plus the waterproof and shock-proof protection would be missing, as would the included mounting options).
4. Keep the GPS and connect only the helmet and deal with the popping every time directions are given (frustrating at best, plus no phone connection).
5. Keep the GPS and connect the phone directly to the helmet and just do without the spoken directions (concerned about the tiny screen and having to read it at speed).

Anyone with similar experience that can offer any suggestions? Anyone have any other opinions to share about this, especially those using a Nolan N-Com system? Will the N-Com work better with the Garmin Zumo (either the 550 or the 660)?

If nothing else, I wanted to let others that are searching for a GPS solution while using a Nolan N-Com system know of my experiences. Thanks.

 

[Patriot]

geeze, that sucks big time, sorry about your troubles

I'm not any help here

I have a Zumo 550 and pair it with my Motorola phone and either my Motorola 830 headset, or my Cardo Scaler Rider headset. All works as advertised for me.

Best of luck,

Mike in Nawlins'

 

[Ian Farlow]

Thanks. I rode in this morning with the phone connected directly to the helmet via bluetooth (as I had it before the TomTom), and just used the TomTom without spoken directions. It actually wasn't as bad as I expected to have to glance at the TomTom for directions. But, I'm thinking that I would rather have the GPS connected to the helmet than the phone... but that doesn't work well at all with the TomTom and N-Com equipment (at least in my case).

 

[Wild72]

Having had the Rider2 paired with both my cellphone and my Autocom via bluetooth, it all worked flawlessly, without any popping, dropped connections, or missed directions.

Have you tried testing the GPS/cellphone setup with the Scala rider headset, which should have come with the GPS? If nothing else it would identify if the problem is with the GPS or the Nolan.

 

[Ian Farlow]

Have you tried testing the GPS/cellphone setup with the Scala rider headset, which should have come with the GPS? If nothing else it would identify if the problem is with the GPS or the Nolan.

Not yet. While not definitive, the Nolan works perfectly with a direct pairing to the cell phone, but then the cell phone and the Nolan are more current bluetooth technology than the TomTom is. I will give the Scala a try in a bit to see what happens.

 

[thomasz]

Yeah, my dad have owned this bluetooth blueant headset for a long time on accessorygeeks.com, no problem at all, it run well. BlueAnt Z9 is a smart and stylish Bluetooth headset with advanced Voice Isolation technology, with two different settings for a natural sounding voice and reduced background noise. There's a small clip on the back that you can wear on your shirt. It's a great-looking headset with outstanding sound quality at a very affordable price.